The Gyermekvasút ( en, Children's Railway) or Line 7 is a

narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

railway line in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

, which connects and Hűvösvölgy and is long. The former name of the line was ''Úttörővasút'' (''Pioneer Railway'', in reference to the communist scouts), and now the official designation is ''MÁV Zrt. Széchenyi-hegy Gyermekvasút''. Except the train driver, all of the posts are operated by children aged 10–14 under adult supervision. It is the world's largest

children's railway A children's railway or pioneer railway is an extracurricular educational institution, where children interested in rail transport can learn railway professions. This phenomenon originated in the USSR and was greatly developed in Soviet times. T ...

. The Széchenyihegy terminus of the Gyermekvasút is a walk from the upper terminus of the Budapest Cog Railway, whilst the Hűvösvölgy terminus is adjacent to the

Budapest tram The tram network of Budapest is part of the mass transit system of Budapest, the capital city of Hungary. The tram lines serve as the second most important backbone of the transit system (after the bus network), carrying almost 100 million more p ...

terminus of the same name.

History

In 1947, the Hungarian State Railways (MÁV) company decided that a railway operated by children would be built. For the railway construction several sites were considered, including the neighbourhood of the

Gödöllő Palace Gödöllő (; german: Getterle; sk, Jedľovo) is a town in Pest County, Budapest metropolitan area, Hungary, about northeast from the outskirts of Budapest. Its population is 34,396 according to the 2010 census and is growing rapidly. It can b ...

Margaret Island Margaret Island ( hu, Margitsziget ; german: Margareteninsel; tr, Kızadası) is a long island, wide, ( in area) in the middle of the Danube in central Budapest, Hungary. The island is mostly covered by landscape parks, and is a popular recrea ...

, and the

Népliget Népliget or People's Park is the biggest public park in Budapest, Hungary. It is located southeast of the city centre, and covers an area of . It was established to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the union of Pest, Buda and Óbuda. The pa ...

, but finally in 1948 the Hungarian Communist Party choose the

Buda Hills The Buda Hills ( Hungarian: ''Budai-hegység'') are a low mountain range of numerous hills which dot the Buda side of Budapest, capital of Hungary. The most famous ones located within city limits are Gellért Hill, Castle Hill, Rózsadomb, , J ...

. The construction started on 11 April 1948. The first section, from ''Széchenyi-hegy'' to ''Előre'' station (now ''Virágvölgy'') was inaugurated on 31 July 1948. The second section, to ' (now ''Szépjuhászné''), was completed one year later, and the last section, to ''Hűvösvölgy'', was opened on 20 August 1950. During the

Hungarian Revolution of 1956 The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (23 October – 10 November 1956; hu, 1956-os forradalom), also known as the Hungarian Uprising, was a countrywide revolution against the government of the Hungarian People's Republic (1949–1989) and the Hunga ...

the railway was closed but was not damaged. It reopened on 3 February 1957. A museum at Hűvösvölgy station displays some items from the Communist period.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gyermekvasut Regional rail in Hungary 1948 establishments in Hungary Children's railways 760 mm gauge railways in Hungary Narrow gauge railways in Hungary Buildings and structures in Budapest